TRANSCAN-4 is a transnational network of national/regional funders supporting high-impact translational cancer research. In this first TRANSCAN-4 joint call, consortia are invited to develop clinically relevant projects on cancer metabolism, aiming to turn mechanistic insights into better diagnosis, patient stratification and treatment options.

The call is two-stage (pre-proposal → full proposal), with projects funded for up to 3 years. It supports ambitious multidisciplinary work (e.g., metabolic imaging, biomarkers, multi-omics/single-cell, AI/radiomics, liquid biopsy, advanced models such as organoids), and it also allows an optional capacity-building component (e.g., researcher exchange/mobility, short-term recruitment/training) if aligned with the project.

Objectives (brief): to foster new researcher-clinician collaborations and deliver high-quality translational projects that advance cancer metabolism knowledge toward clinical benefit.

• Consortium: 3-6 partners from ≥3 participating countries (max 2 groups per country). It may increase to 7 partners if it includes a partner from Hungary, Malta, Slovakia or Türkiye (and additional widening may apply at full stage).
• Mandatory ECR: at least one Early-Career Researcher (ECR) must be a principal investigator in the consortium (ECR definition and national nuances apply).
• Translational mix: consortium must include at least one basic/pre-clinical team and one clinical team (bioinformatics/biostatistics expertise recommended depending on the work).
• Who can apply (depending on national rules): academic, clinical/public health groups, and (where allowed) enterprise groups, with emphasis on SMEs.
• Submission & format: proposals in English, submitted by the coordinator via PT-Outline; official templates are mandatory.
• Important: some funders require a mandatory eligibility check before pre-proposal submission (incl. IT-MOH, FRRB, Tuscany Region, ISCIII & FCAECC, CSO-MOH).

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